. >> reporter: president obama joked and jabbed in the white house briefing room as he pressed the point that he's no lame duck and that he'll keep pushing his priority. >> we understand that we're in a divided government right now. republicans control the house of representatives. in the senate this habit of requiring 60 votes for even the most modest piece of legislation has gummed up the works there. despite that, i'm actually confident that there are a range of things we'll be able to get done. >> reporter: for instance he said he believes congress will approve sweeping immigration reform. and he insisted he hasn't given up on closing the prison at guantanamo, cuba, as he vowed to do in his first presidential campaign. >> i think it is critical for us to understand that guantanamo is not necessary to keep america safe. it is expensive. it is inefficient. it hurts us in terms of our international standings. it lessens cooperation with our allies on counterterrorism efforts. it is a recruitment tool for extremists. it needs to be closed. >> reporter: congress has balancinged at transfe